About Me

Born in the late 60's, Chesy hails from a Welsh mining village with a long name and was pretty glad when he got the Hell out of there. He got into Rock/Metal in about 1980, thanks to a TISWAS related incident (Rainbow video for All Night Long) and thankfully has never looked back.
Chesy often sang solo in the school choir, but thanks to a puberty related incident his voice is now completely bolloxed, although in his own head Paul thinks he sounds like a blend of Coverdale and Dio (R.I.P).
He was brought up on the classics - Deep Purple, Rainbow, Thin Lizzy, Rush, Whitesnake and loved melodic rock and the Hair Bands of the 80's. (Nowadays, he has progressed a little and prefers a more technical and/or progressive metal - Dream Theater, Rush, Symphony X, Porcupine Tree, Pain Of Salvation, Spock's Beard. He hates Black and Death Metal (can't stand the grunting) but for some unknown reason loves the magnificent Opeth! He wont stop this blog until his beloved FM finally play the likes of the NEC as a headlining act!!!

Wednesday, 19 October 2016

Saxon - 'The Vinyl Hoard' Review

Blimey! where do you begin with four double albums of live
Saxon to go at? You play them in chronological order and then shake your head
at the breadth of a career spanning decades.

Let’s face it not everyone can be Iron Maiden but if anyone
could have been Saxon surely fits that bill. A lifetime of metal, still going
strong long after most of their contemporaries have hung up their spandex,
Saxon proudly play their music and drive the audience onward with stirring
choruses to sing along to whilst banging your head. Excellent.

This release consists of a nice box with four double albums
inside, the records are pressed in 180g gold vinyl (yes gold) and you get that
nice gatefold feeling with lots of archive pictures from tours past printed on
them.

These are all live albums from different tours; ‘The dogs of
war tour’ 1995 which has a great warm sound to it. ‘The lionheart tour’ 2004
which does not, it isn’t bad but it has been a little over produced; maybe to
fix some sound issue, and this has left it with a rather flat sound, not
terrible but lacking slightly in the ‘live’ feeling.

Next up is ‘A night out with the boys tour’ 2005 which is
back to having a great big sound, so if you don’t like the version of Crusader
on the 2004 recording you can listen to a much better one on the 2005 recording
as several songs repeat over the albums. Lastly we have ‘Rocksound festival’
2006, Crusader is on here and the 1995 tour too, take your pick.

Now let’s face it if you’re interested in this you’re a
diehard completest fan and are probably going to get a copy whatever I say.
These recordings are already available in different formats and have been for
years so this is aimed squarely at the person who just wants the vinyl to feel,
smell, look at on a strange angle near the window checking for imperfections and
lovingly place on his deck like a sacrificial offering and doesn’t mind the
cost, which is a lot.

Saxon are a British treasure and listening to these
recording gives you a feeling of pride that they come from our shores. If
you’re into your vinyl and have the cash, you won’t be disappointed.

1.“The Dogs Of War Tour, 1995”

Recorded
on tour in Germany

Featuring:
Dogs
Of War, Denim And Leather, Wheels Of Steel

2. “The
Lionheart Tour, 2004”

Recorded on tour in France, England and
Germany

Featuring: Lionheart,
Court Of The Crimson King, Are We Travellers In Time

3. “A
Night Out With The Boys, 2005: The 25th Anniversary of the NWOBHM”

Recorded
on tour in Germany and Sweden

Featuring:
And
The Bands Played On, Suzie Hold On, Stand Up And Be Counted